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[return to the REVIEWS archives]
reviewed on: August 1, 2008
Through the years we’ve eaten a lot of good meals in restaurants. But, every now and then, we visit a restaurant where the overall experience, food, service, and ambiance, is so outstanding that we end up talking about it all the way home. And so it was this week after a visit to the new Grappa Mediterranean Bistro in Golden.
When Rhapsody’s at Clear Creek closed a year ago, the reason given was that the people of Golden just wouldn’t support a restaurant of that caliber, and Denverites who were looking for an upscale dining experience weren’t looking for it in Golden. Whatever the reason for the demise of Rhapsody’s, it wasn’t capricious lack of support from Golden or Denver. On the evening we attended Grappa, which now occupies the second story space at 11th and Washington in Golden, the dining room had a respectable crowd, and the wonderful patio overlooking Clear Creek was packed from end to end.
And it sure wasn’t the décor that did Rhapsody’s in. The beautiful European dining room with it’s peach hued walls accented by gold bas-relief swirls and mahogany trim, the starched white linens, and the attractive bar are all just as before. Which leaves us with the food.
Chef Maurice Coutourier the new owner of Grappa, was born in Normandy, France, and ended up running restaurants in that country before becoming the personal chef to King Hussein of Jordan. I have no idea why anyone would walk away from that position, but some people just have itchy feet. So Coutourier ended up in Aspen where he ran La Provence, La Boheme, and the Ute City Bank before wowing Boulder with L’Absinthe. Obviously, the man has more than a bit of talent.
Appetizer selections at Grappa include crab cakes, a shrimp and lobster salad, and a mix of mussels and clams in a spicy puttanesca sauce. They all sounded good, but we went with the Open Lobster Ravioli made with sun-dried cherries, spinach and mozzarella, all in a dreamy lobster sauce with just a hint of curry. It’s one of those dishes which you don’t want to see end, and finish up using the bread to dab at the last remaining dollops of sauce rather than see it go back to the kitchen.
Entrees include a number of pasta and risotto dishes, including ravioli made with escargot and wild mushrooms, penne in a vodka-tomato sauce topped with pan-seared salmon, and fettuccine in a sauce of spinach, artichokes and sun-dried tomato pesto. The non-pasta selection includes, among others, lamb osso bucco, veal piccata, striped bass done in parchment paper with baby spinach, braised fennel and tomatoes.
We chose the Gratine Gnocchi Genovese with homemade gnocchi combined with shrimp in a killer basil pesto and a dusting of Romano cheese, as well as a perennial favorite, Duck a L’orange in a delightful orange sauce, served over a mix of wild and Basmati rice.
Somewhere along the line, you have to try a glass of sweet, house-made limoncello or a glass of fruity Sangria—both excellent.
Prices at Grappa are moderate, beginning in the low teens for some of the pasta dishes, and topping out at $26 for a file mignon with pan-seared foie gras. Grappa offers plenty of parking beneath the building and on the street.
Grappa Mediterranean Bistro
1027 Washington Ave. (corner of 11th and Washington)
303-273-8882
http://grappabistro.com/ |
